Show THE ICONOCLAST Young Mr Droughton was unawares and gradual In process of evolution from the Journalist to the newspaperman newspaper-man It took all sorts of rubs and surprises sur-prises and facers and disillusions to form him That morning he was hurrying hur-rying through Printing House Square on an assignment when lie noticed before be-fore him a woman carrying on her head a tray of plaster Images und walking with thu stately gait and even poise of the South Italian She was small brown She wore a gown of blue cotton a woolen shawl III aIded in olive and yellow and a red kerchief on her head These glaring colors however made her a picture To observe her llroughton passed by her und then looked buck She regarded him calmly Buy alit a-lit San Samuelo uaysa his oration signorY Uroughton had no particular use for a praying Samuel but he hud various theories about our adopted citizens and might have acquired something In the plaster cast line If at that moment a broadshouldered fellow had not come and jostled the little woman so roughly rough-ly that the tray was thrown from her head and went ruining to the sidewalk It was the end of the world for that population of graven Images They loll In a heap of Indlstlngulshublu fragments frag-ments mingling their dust In a complete com-plete democracy of saints politicians lambs I thu three graces and even a model of a beautiful foot labeled Trilby Tril-by tttle Samuel was past piuylng for but he was no more thoroughly pulverized than the bust of Napoleon Young Air liroughton foil stirring within him an essay on the frailty 01 mundane things Then the air uas lorn with the lamentations of the woman O Madonna Next she denounced the cause of the disaster who was moving away Head of big you urea Whyit you hlta ntof h hat I ever done at yaua You breaka my Image I not eatu morel she rattled her linger nails rlong her front teeth to Indicate the hunger which would be the consequence of the breaking of her stock In trade Meanwhile two bootblacks had seized the man by the elbows and turning him around ran him back face to face with the woman She stood wringing her hands and walling What ruin Poora me The aggressor was evidently also an Italian Soy one of the bootblacks said Youse has goiter reach down Inter per clothes and square up wld do dugo loldy loidyHes Hes a bloomln dago hlsself commented com-mented the other boy liroughton had been painfully com posing a fow phrases of such colloquial Italian all his Harvard studies of Dante had rendered possible to him and now uttered them In a stiff and toneless accent ac-cent In gffect ho said that It was nec cessnry to pay the compatriot for that which was broken I only got a ten cpiitn signor said the offender handing the coin to the woman He was permitted to HO In peace Tetra centa Madonna mlal For KO mooch image sobbed she So Broughton put 1 Into his own hat and passed it around among HIP throng that had been attracted by tho noise When he gave the collection to the woman she wiped her eyes kissed his hands with many benedictions and went her way llroughtunn assignment had taken him In tin direction of Mtilhciry bond AH he returned through that quarto he paw a hundred yards In front of him u I woman with a tray of images on her head Hi quickened his pace und soon WUH near her It wan the name Italian she had replenished her tray with more saints and heroes find graces So it Is mused young Mr Brough tonwho still trailed clouds of the glory of Journalism that In this world no one Is Indispensable One perishes another replaces horn J Just then swaggering around a corner cor-ner appeared the former breaker of Images and again as If on purpose he swung his arm rudely against the woman As before a crash lamentations lamenta-tions and a crowd The dwellers of Mulberry Uend themselves well acquainted ac-quainted with poverty gave of their few copper coins to her who sat walling wall-Ing among thu ruins of her wares They helped her to pick up such of the casts as were not Irremediably broken and to replace them on the tray This time Uroughton did not stay to act as consoler con-soler The aggressor had walked off rapidly and the reporter followed him After live minutes chase they turned Into an unspeakably dirty alley where the Italian entered a doorway without noticing that any one pursued him Hroughton having made sure that he should recognize the house again hastened to the nearest police station and told the story She was a quiet decent little body he said to the olllcer That great hulking brute struck her on purpose the second time even admitting that the llrat time might have been by accident acci-dent dentwo Two policemen were detailed to accompany ac-company Mr Brotighton who was known to the chief of the station and he led them straight to the door where the Italian had entered Up the dark and broken stairs they climbed liroughton shrunk from contact with the slimy walls It seemed to him that evil odors were depositing themselves there In a pestilential fungous growth At last they emerged upon a landing A child leaned over the baluster of the story above Broughton tossed him a nickel My little man Is there an Italian living In this house The child picked up the coin and stared In silence Say kid Is dere a dago here one of the policemen translated The boy pointed with u thumb to a door at the left of the landing where the three men stood Broughton felt the thrill of the righteous avenger The malicious brute who had twice destroyed de-stroyed the wares of the poor little Imagevender would soon be sent to the Island And a good riddance for tho community One of the police opened tho door and they entered They saw atone at-one side of the room a long workbench covered with plaster Images The Iconoclast Icon-oclast sat there carefully mending a broken figure The woman was leaning lean-Ing over his shoulder laughing as they chatted In their own language Eh I always say it Pietro you have a holy hand at mending them It not we might lose by the game I dont say Madonna that St Samuel Sam-uel Is better than new but at least he will stick until he takes another tumble tum-ble So that was their trick I A piece of real Neapolitan cunning Broughton decided that he ought to have seen through It sooner The woman caught sight of the visitors and ran forward with hands clasped We alnt donea nottln she pleaded Dls our beeza ness AVe ullarlghta Yes youre all right Bald Brough ton Impulsively It was my mistake I owe you a dollar for It And he laid a silver dollar on the work bench of the maker breaker and mender of Images The Italian looked up with a real Neapolitan smile radiant many toothed wide and Irresponsible Tell me about It said the reporter You not glvea me way gentmen cops No go on Look It likea dls AVe not sell image im-age And I say you heara me Marian na we get more money to break all She carry de Image Den I comea with granda forcen Patatrac All ruina I Aanar me Dat Marlanna Aah poor I Dat people Somebody tidea nOney In hat Donta cry poor voiian After I menda whata can After I Marlanna babies all eat See All this time the wife stood with lour rather clean and very beautiful children child-ren clinging to her skirts and peeping shyly ut the strangers How could Broughton or any one else blame this happy family Indeed Broughton has never formulated formu-lated his views upon the case although he used to take social problems very seriously Whenever he meets Pietro In the street they exchange a glance of Intelligence I In-telligence Sometimes the Neapolitan I by a quick gesture Indicates Marianna farther along the avenue And then Broughton If he has time assists at the nth performance of the comedy of the Iconoclast Elizabeth Iullen In St Louis GlobeDemocrat |